St Edward's Crown, 1661

Watercolor and ink on paper, 2019

This crown is the centerpiece of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. Named after Edward the Confessor, it has been traditionally used to crown English and British monarchs at their coronations since the 13th century. It is solid gold, 12 inches tall, weighs 4.9 pounds, and is decorated with 444 precious and semi-precious stones. After 1689, it was not used to crown a monarch for over 200 years. In 1911, the tradition was revived by George V, and all subsequent monarchs have been crowned using St Edward's Crown. A stylised image of this crown is used on coats of arms, badges, logos and various other insignia in the Commonwealth realms to symbolise the royal authority of Queen Elizabeth II.

Dragon Cup, 1821-1850

Watercolor and pencil on paper, 2018.

René Buthaud was seen as the most accomplished and important French ceramist of the Art Deco period. He designed simple stoneware forms made for him by local potters and used crackle glazes with which to decorate them. He was also influenced by African tribal art, evident in those pieces where he used lustres or what he called ‘peau de serpent’ (snakeskin). Many of his best-known pieces are painted with female nudes. Work by Buthaud can be found in the collections of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, among many others.

Attic Black-Figured Neck-Amhora, Late 6th BC

Watercolor and pencil on paper, 2018.

I studied greek art and architecture in university for a short time and have always been fascinated with the pottery and ruins of the ancient Greeks. This is my watercolor illustration of an Attic Black-Figured Neck-Amhora, attributed to the red-line painter, Circa late 6th century BC. This is a typical merriment scene with Dionysos reclining on a Kline, with maenads dancing each side of him.